Psalms 8:1, 31:1-3, 16:1-2
My Shepherd met me in His green pastures almost as soon as I awoke. Usually, I wake up singing Psalms, or some hymn; usually Psalms 8:1 and 16:2. This morning I woke up thinking about some insights the Lord stirred into my thoughts from Sunday morning’s devotions. Nevertheless, I entered my prayer closet to present myself before the LORD and sat with my Bible, browsing about and pondering some things old and new (Matthew 13:52).
Today was an odd devotional day. My mind wandered from one topic to another. I thought about laughter, and noticed that it’s seldom remarked on positively: of the seven times the word laughter is used, only one seems to reflect a positive state of mind (compare Psalm 126:2 with Proverbs 14:3; Ecclesiastes 2:2, 7:3, 6, 10:19, and James 4:9). It’s true a “merry heart doeth good like a medicine” (Proverbs 17:22). And laughter is understandably associated with a merry heart (Job 8:21; Luke 6:21), but these are only two occassions of thirty-eight references to laughing found in the Bible. Most of them connect laughing to scorn (11x), and some of them elevate mourning and sorrow above it in value (Ecclesiastes 7:3; James 4:9).
Then my thoughts turned to Paul’s statement that “the kingdom of God is not in word (logos), but in power (dunamis)” (1 Corinthians 4:20). The relationship between the logos and manifestations of God’s power is demonstrated by Christ, “the Logos” (Matthew 8:8, 16; John 1:1, 14; and although Hebrews 1:3 uses rhema, also translated word, it refers to an utterance that communicates a command, instruction, or an authoritative declaration on a topic). The insight I received from my thoughts on this verse today is that one may speak the word without power.
But my thought kept returning to Mark 7, and the insights the Word communicated to my heart powerfully.
The verse God used to draw me into communion with His Spirit is Mark 7:9:
Mark 7:9 And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.
I reflected on this while walking with my Lord along the still waters.
The Pharisees elevated their own words above God’s, and this resulted in them exalting themselves over the Son of God, the “Word” made flesh, Christ come in the flesh (2 John 7). What a disaster! They condemned Him Who came to deliver them.
Many Christians neutralize the effect of God’s words by elevating their own traditions above the commandments of God. Spirituality is hard to measure, and this creates a problem for those who measure themselves by themselves (2 Corinthians 10:12). The tendency is to create superficial standards through manmade customs and traditions and substitute these for genuine spirituality. That makes “spirituality” easier to measure, and also much easier to maintain. It does one more thing also: it makes it easier to hide rebellion against God’s words (Mark 7:9-13).
What differentiated Jesus from the religious rulers of the Jews was not so much in what He said, but in the power that manifested when He said it (Mark 1:22). The sons of Sceva invoked the names of Jesus and Paul, but they had no authority and so no power (Acts 19:13-16). What of those who have the authority but are devoid of power?
On many points, the Pharisees I mentioned earlier, who elevated their traditions above God’s word, spoke truth about a great many things (Matthew 23:1-4). But they didn’t do the truth they spoke. They were word-only believers, who drew nigh to God with their mouth, but their heart was far from Him (Matthew 15:8).
In the valley, as I waited for the word, I confessed my sins and made my petition to my Lord and my God (John 20:28). I offered my laughter in trade for mourning. The Word spoke, and His voice was as the sound of many waters: “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me” (Luke 9:23). As He spoke, I thought of the vision He cast for our dispensation of the Gospel when He said, “He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water” (John 7:38).
At the table, I bowed my head as He anointed it with His oil and watched as He mixed His grace into my cup. Goodness and mercy came and followed us into the harvest: Another day of service with the King.
Praying for revival! 🙏
Going live asap: (Scheduled for 10:30, hope to go on by 10:15)
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